The basic plan, and the tools

So, I'm stuck here without snow. Hell will freeze over before it stys on the ground here for longer than 24hours. The nearby sea's salt seems a part of the soil and streets.

I want to get fit for XC skiing, and learn the complex technique, especially the free style, skating technique.
A good weight, strong muscles and excellent high-aerobic endurance will be required.

Jogging
I plan to do this at least 3 times a week. Pole running will be added to that, to make the workout more full-body, and somewhat prepare me for the classic xc skiing I'll be trying next time on snow.
Perhaps I should already set some dates to do run racing, but I only consider this while I'm typing this. I just suck at running, being confronted by skinny athletes who live to run doesn't help my psyche too much.

Cycling.
Ideal for long workouts of course. Not too stressful. I'll have to pick this back up. I plan to show up for club training rides on Wednesdays again, it's a 19km commute to get there too.
Some MTB races (fun class, this time) are on the schedule to be able to test myself.


Skating
This is where I have most to learn. Specific muscles and moves to master. Skiing will be all about the outward pushes of the legs, and using abs to press down on the poles.
Logical step would be to poick up roller skiing. I tried, and could keep standing up. Falling on the knees on asphat hurts. I just cannot do this. Why do people consider it fun? You must be some sort of an acrobat for this stuff! That's a big bummer, and €300 wasted.

I tried Crosskates shortly. Two 10" air wheels per skate, free heels, disfunctional brakes, but self-steering front wheels. They ended up easy to master, as least on asphalt, and allowed me to try basic XC technique before I hit the snow forst time. Afterwards, the timing seemed off, and they turned me off.

Next: inline skating. Man, these things roll fast. Scary.
I eventually bought some SLOW wheels, K2 Continentals. Desinged for the rain, but too slow for the inline folks. K2 markets the wheels for Nordic Blading, and the resistance sure feels similar to snow. Even downhill speeds are kept in check, which is a very good thing for the chicken me.
I'll be Nordic Blading on 90mm wheels for the rest of my life, I hope.

Air Tires.
Like some rollerskis, various Nordic Skate concepts use 150mm air tires. Those don't roll too fast, and work well on less-than-perfect aphalt. My long rollerskis ended up not working for me, too stable. harder than skiing on snow by factor 20. The Powerslides and Skike of this world though, don't seem to favour my show size 48.

I'll expand on my trianing focusses, drills and tools more later on. Open to any kinds of suggestions!